Gospel: Darkness, Light and God

Ramsay, Gordie

Genesis 1:1-3 “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.”

Darkness, deep, thick, impenetrable. Darkness that came not from lack of light, but darkness that shrouded the earth before physical light existed.

Chaos. Disorder. Formlessness. Emptiness. Ruin.

Energy. Spiritual energy. Divine energy. The Holy Spirit of God hovering over the darkness. Energy that was the very force which would call forth the light, stirs the deep blackness. Suddenly the darkness is shattered by a voice: “Let there be light.”

Light, pure, bright. Light from the very person of God. Light that dissolves darkness. Light that is life.

Luke 23:44-45 “And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst.”

Darkness. Not the darkness that existed before light, but the darkness that exists when all that is light or contains light has been taken away.

Colossians 1:13. “Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated [us] into the kingdom of his dear Son:”

Darkness. The darkness of death. The solitude of a dungeon. Cold. Desperate. The darkness of blinded eyes that have never seen. The darkness of a soul without God.

Sin. Chaos. Restlessness. Sin that rules the soul and wraps the life with heavy chains. Evil that allows nothing but destruction. Daunting, dominating evil.

God’s Spirit moves. A voice shatters the darkness with unsullied light, “Let there be light,” it says. The light of the glorious gospel of Christ shines into a searching soul. “Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.” The dungeon flames with light. The chains snap. The sinner is freed.

Sinner, your life is ruled by sin. Chaos greater and darkness deeper than those before creation reside in your soul. Evil, the same sinister evil that darkened Calvary, wraps your heart and plummets you toward the depths of eternal doom. There is one light that can penetrate, one voice that can shatter this darkness. It’s the light of the gospel. It’s the voice of God. Why can it penetrate? It can penetrate because God’s Son endured the blackness of Calvary for us. “Dumb darkness wrapped His soul a space, the darkness due to me. “In the darkness He has brought us light. “For God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness…” (2 Cor 4:6).